Some experts now think that most veterans who served active duty during wartime will at some point suffer from PTSD.

Talk to a Disability Lawyer

According
to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Post-Traumatic Stress
Disorder (PTSD) is the most common mental health problem suffered by
troops returning from combat. If you are a veteran of the United States
Armed Forces, and have developed Post Traumatic Stress Disorder as a
result of your service, you are likely eligible for veterans disability
benefits.

What Is Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder?

PTSD
is the development of symptoms following an extreme traumatic event
involving personal exposure to actual or threatened death or serious
injury, or witnessing an event involving death or injury of another
person, or learning of the death or serious injury of a family member or
close associate. The person suffering from PTSD experiences intense
fear, helplessness or horror, and may re-experience the traumatic event.
He or she may also try to avoid stimuli associated with the trauma, and
may experience numbing of general responsiveness or persistent symptoms
of increased stimulation. The symptoms occur for longer than one month
and cause significant disruption in social or work-related functioning.

Events
that trigger PSTD are referred to by the VA regulations as “stressors”
and may include natural disasters, accidents, and deliberate man-made
events or disasters, including war.

Who Qualifies for Veterans Disability Benefits?

In
order to qualify for any type of veterans disability benefits, certain
criteria must be met. First, the veteran must currently have a medically
diagnosed disease or disability, which may include a mental illness or
mental disorder such as PTSD. Second, there must have been a triggering
incident during active military, naval, or air service. Third, the
veteran must prove a causal connection between the military service and
the current injury or disease, otherwise known as showing that the
disability is “service-connected.”

How to Obtain Disability Benefits

In
order to obtain disability benefits, a veteran with PTSD must first
undergo an evaluation at a VA medical facility. A psychiatrist at the VA
medical center must provide a diagnosis of PTSD in order for a veteran
to be able to obtain disability benefits for PTSD.

The
veteran must also apply for disability benefits, which can be done
online at the Veterans Online Application website (VONAPP) at www.ebenefits.va.gov. Alternatively, the veteran can fill out VA Form 21-526.

The
veteran must also supply certain documentation, including a DD214
Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty, or other
separation papers for all periods of service, and copies of medical
records including the mental health evaluation done at the VA medical
facility. Additionally, the VA will accept Form 21-4138 Statement in
Support of a Claim, which may include a letter from the veteran
detailing the events that triggered the PTSD or the symptoms suffered by
the veteran, as well as letters from friends or family members
describing the impact of PTSD on the veteran.

Streamlined PTSD Regulations

New
regulations that went into affect on July 13, 2010 streamlined the
process for veterans suffering from PTSD to obtain benefits, and easier
for non-combat veterans to prove that their PTSD is a result of a stressor related to “fear of hostile military or
terrorist activity,” if the stressor is consistent with the places,
types, and circumstances of their service. The regulations require that:

the veteran have a PTSD diagnosis

a VA psychiatrist or psychologist confirm that the stressor was enough to cause the PTSD

the veteran's symptoms are related to the occurrence of the stressor, and

the stressor is consistent
with the places, types, and circumstances of the veteran’s service and
the record provides no clear and convincing evidence to the contrary.

Prior
to this new regulation, veterans were required to provide supporting
evidence and documentation verifying the occurrence of the stressor, a
requirement which was time consuming and often difficult to fulfill.

How does the VA determine a disability rating for veterans suffering from PTSD?

Compensation
amounts for disabled veterans are determined based on a rating system.
Each disability's severity is measured in 10% increments, ranging from
10% to 100% disabled. A higher percentage rating given to a veteran's
disability results in a higher level of compensation received by the
veteran.

In
order to determine what percentage disability rating to assign to a
veteran with PTSD, the rating agency considers the frequency, severity,
and duration of psychiatric symptoms, the length of remissions, and the
veteran's capacity for adjustment during periods of remission. The
rating agency also takes into account the degree of occupational and
social impairment suffered by the veteran (although the rating may not
be solely based on social impairment.)

The
statute governing veterans disability benefits also identifies specific
symptoms and effects of mental disorders (specifically including PTSD)
and assigns a disability rating based on these symptoms. For example, a
veteran experiencing total occupational and social impairment, gross
impairment of thought processes and communication, persistent delusions
or hallucinations, persistent danger of hurting himself or others,
intermittent inability to perform the activities of daily living, memory
loss, or disorientation about time and place would be assigned a 100%
disability rating. On the other hand, a veteran with PTSD experiencing
only mild or transient symptoms that decrease work efficiency and the
ability to perform occupational tasks only during periods of significant
stress, or whose symptoms are controlled by continuous medication,
would be assigned a disability rating of 10%.

If
the PTSD results from a highly stressful event that requires a
serviceman be released from military duty early, then the VA must assign
a rating of no less than 50% disabled, and another evaluation must be
done within six months of the veteran's discharge to determine if the
rating should be changed.